Packaging machine



Dec. 28, 1965 R. F. BULGER ETAL 3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1962 8 S1f1e1ets-S1ueei*l l ATTOR NEYSDec- 28, 1965 R. F. BULGER ETAL 3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE 8 Sheets-Sheet 2 K 0 70S mmsmm .w n OWARA j N TUGUC mR NBUG d E L .F O ww VE DS y T N E T WTF-HM A @Q my? i-: @Q M FiledSept. 14, 1962 Dec- 28, 1965 R. F. BULGER ETAL 3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1962 8 Sheets-Sheet 3 4 loo ROBERT F.BULGER STEPHEN LucAs Fl G. 3. BY wALTER n. suRDAcK a JAMES F. GAIN Dec.28, 1965 R. F. BULGER ETAL 3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed sept. 14, 1962 e sheets-sheet 4HllllllllllllllllllllilllllHlll lllllllllllllllllllllIIIII IIIII Il IlIl Il Il H INVENTOR ROBERT F. BULGER F I G 4 STEPHEN LUGAS BY WALTER D.GURDAGK B JAMES F. GAIN ATTORNEYS DCC- 28, 1965 R. F. BULGr-:R ETAL3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Sept. 14, 1962 Dec. 28, 1965 R.F. BULGER ETAL PACKAGING MACHINE 8 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Sept. 14, 1962FIG. 8.

INVENTORS nw A GSD LARN uwwm BL .C D FNRF E MHP-s EPTE BELM OTAA RSWJ Ymi wif* @yay ATTORNEYS Dec. 28, 1965 R F, BULGER ETAL 3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed sept. 14, 1962 8 sheets-sheet v se 39o /395 6394 ses 397 39e sal- E E arl-rIE ses 54 o. m

@152 L/'ssa 384 U f 5 'i n 376 Y 37e aso FIG. IO.

INVENTORS ROBERT F. BULGER STEPHEN LUGAS BY WALTER D. GURDAGK 8 JAMES F.GAIN gm, M154 Y #Mfg ATTOR N EYS Dec. 28, 1965 R. F. BULGER ETAL3,225,512

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1962 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 INVENTORS ROBERTF. BULGER STEPHEN LUCAS BY WALTER D. GURDAGK & JAMES F. GAIN UnitedStates Patent O 3,225,5l2 PACKAGING MACHINE Robert F. Bulger, Levittown,Pa., Stephen Lucas, Ilellmawr, NJ., and Walter I). Gnrtlaclr and .lamesF. Cain, Philadelphia, Pa., assigner-s to Bayul; Cigars Incorporated,Fhiladclphia, Pa., a corporation of Maryland Filed Sept. 14, 1962, Ser.No. 223,743 Claims. (Cl. 53-159) This invention relates to the art ofpackaging and, more particularly, to a machine which automaticallycounts a predetermined number of packages, stacks the packages, opens acarton, inserts the stack of packages into the carton, partially closessaid carton and discharges the partially closed carton..

In the cigar manufacturing industry it is customary to sell cigars inpocket sized packages containing live cigars commonly referred to asfivepacks. It is also conventional practice to display such five-packsat a tobacco counter in a display carton, the display carton containingperhaps ten five-packs and having a flap portion carrying anadvertisement concerning the cigars contained therein.

Prior to the present invention, it was necessary to employ aconsiderable number of persons to count and stack each ten five-packsand insert them into a display carton prior to shipping the cartons tothe tobacco distributor. The present invention eliminates this manuallabor by providing a machine which accomplishes all of these steps in afully automatic manner and which requires the presence of only oneattendant for operating a group of such machines.

In addition, the present invention greatly increases the production rateof such packaging so that the rate of the entire manufacturing processfrom beginning to inal packaging is substantially increased.

The above objects, as well as others more particularly relating to thedetails of construction and operation, will become more fully apparentfrom the following description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE l is a top plan view of the complete packaging machine;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged, top plan View showing the central portion ofthe machine illustrated in FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 is a front elevational view, partly in section, taken along theplane indicated by line 3 3 of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 4 is a side elevational view, partly in section, taken along theplane indicated by line 4 4 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional View taken along line 5 5 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along the plane indicated by line 6 6of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along line 7 7 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 8 is a rear elevational View taken along the plane represented byline 8 3 of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 9 is a sectional View taken along the plane indicated by line 9 9in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 1G is a sectional view taken along the plane indicated by line Nll) in FIGURE 4; and

FIGURE ll is a schematic diagram of the electrical circuitry whichcontrols the automatic operation of the machine.

Reference is first made to FIGURES l through 4 wherein the variouscomponents of the packaging machine are shown as being mounted on upperand lower shelves 20 and 22, respectively, the shelves being secured toa plurality of upright legs one of which is shown ICC at 24 in FIGURE 3.This double shelf construction permits the location. of all of theoperating components i.e., those components which come into contact withthe livepacks and the display cartons, to be located in a common planeon the upper shelf removed from most of the drive elements such as thevarious gears and power sources which may be conveniently positioned onthe lower shelf,

thus requiring a minimum of iloor space along the proe duction line.

Numeral 26 generically designates a conveyor which may be of the belttype or merely a chute through which the individual five-packs areconveyed in the direction of arrow Ztl into the machine at the feedpoint indicated by letter A in FIGURES l through 4. In this position,one live-pack is supported by the horizontal, upper surface of a plungerSta rigidly secured to the upper end of a push-rod 32. The upper portionof rod 32 passes through a guide block 36 rigidly secured to avertically extending support 33 the lower end of which is bolted tobracket 3% stationarily mounted on shelf 22. The lower end of rod 32carries a movable guide block lll which is limited to vertical motion bya pair of vertical bars 42 also secured to support 3S. Movable block 49carries a roller 34 and a laterally extending pin 44 to which one end oftension spring i6 is connected, the other end of the spring beingsecured to stationary pin i5 thereby providing a biasing force in thedownward direction so as to maintain roller 34 in constant engagementwith the surface of a cam Sti. Cam 50 is secured to drive shaft 52journaled in bearings 5d and 56 whereby plunger Sil is reciprocatedvertically for the purpose of pushing each individual ve-pack upwardlyinto stacking and counting mechanism 6d.

Stacking and counting mechanism 60 includes a pair of members 62 whichare pivotally mounted on rods 64 secured to support plates 66 such thatthe upper ends of the members are capable of lateral movements towardand away from each other, the lower ends of plates 66 being secured toframe 68 and the upper ends thereof being secured to shelf 2li. Each ofthe members 62 is biased toward the other by a compression' spring 70contained in a cylinder 7l mounted on each of plates 66. The closed endof cylinders 7l mount adjustment screws 72 whereby the biasing force Aofthe springs may be adjusted. The amount of movement of members 62 towardeach other is limited by the heads of bolts 74 which are also secured toplates 66. Each of the members is further provided with a converging camsurface 76 against which the five-pack bears as it is pushed upwardly byplunger 3d. Thus, the members are forced away from each other againstthe biasing force of springs 7@ as each live-pack is pushed upwardlytherethrough. As each live-pack is raised to the extent that its lowersurface is slightly above the plane defined by the upper, horizontalsurfaces of members 62, the members snap back to the position shown inFIGURE 3 under the influence of the springs. In this manner, members 62coact to form a false bottom for mechanism 60 the upper portion of whichis dened by vertical wall members 78, 79, 80 and a pair of spring biaseddoors 82.

Wall member 78 adjustably mounts a switch 138, the vertical position ofwhich may be set so that the switch is actuated by the top live-packwhen the stack reaches a preselected number such as ten.

As most clearly shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 each of doors 82 includes avertical, non-rotational shaft 84 which is mounted at its upper end in asuitable bracket 86 attached to one of crosspieces 88, the lower ends ofthe shafts 84 being secured by brackets 9G positioned on shelf 2Q. Eachshaft carries a torsion spring 92 one end of which is secured by collar94 rigidly carried by the shaft and the other end of which bears againstthe surface of the associated door 82. Thus, each of doors 82 is capableof opening in the direction of the arrows shown in FIGURE 2 so that thestack of tive-packs may be moved to the left over plate 95 from positionA to po.- sition B by lateral displacement mechanism 100 which isactuated by switch 138.

The lateral displacement mechanism 100 includes a pair of endless chains102, 104 running over sprockets 106, 108 and 110, 112 respectively.Sprockets 108 and 112 are journalled for rotation on adjustable shaft113, whereas, sprockets 106 and 110 are driven by shaft 114 which, asshown in FIGURE 4, is driven by chain 116 from drive sprocket 120.

As best shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, the chains are rigidly connected bythree bridges 122, 123 and 124 which carry pairs of arms 126, 127 and128, respectively. It will be understood that the chains rotateclockwise, as viewed in FIGURE 3, so that arms 126, 127, and i128 areoperative to slide the stack of five-packs from position A to position Bover plate 95 as will be subsequently described in more detail. At thispoint, it should be noted that the push arms are positioned so as tostraddle a hold-down bar 130 which is loosely supported at opposite endsby a pair of bolts 132 secured to walls 78 and 134 by means such asblocks 136. It will also be noted that a microswitch 83 is adjustablymounted on crosspiece 88 at a position such that it is engaged by theedge of the bridges as they move the five-packs from position A toposition B, the purpose of this switch being deferred at this point.

Referring now to FIGURES 1 and 2, numeral 140 designates a pneumaticpower cylinder having a push block 142 secured to operating plunger 144.Wall 134 carries a microswitch 146 which is operative to actuatecylinder 140 so as to move pusher 142 in the direction of arrow 148 sothat the stack iof live-packs may be moved from position B to positionC, the latter position being the point at which the five-packs areinserted into a display carton as will be subsequently described indetail.

Reference is now made to FIGURES 1, 2, and 9 which illustrate thedisplay carton holding mechanism 150. This mechanism includes a pair =ofspaced, parallel rails 152, 154 which underlie a pair of transverselyextending support members 156, 158 having L-shaped crosssections asshown in FIGURE 5. Rail 152 also serves as a support for verticallyextending wall 160 which has a pair of upstanding members 162 and 164.Member 156 also supports a pair of upstanding members 165 and 166, Whilemember 158 supports an additional pair of upstanding members 168 and170. A second pair of support members 172 and 174 extend toward eachother and are welded together along their interfaces at 176.

Member 172 is supported at one end from rail 154, whereas, member 174 issupported by connection to transverse member `158. In this manner, theright angle corner formed by members 172 and 174 forms a cantileversupport for upstanding members 178, 180 and 182, member 174 alsosupporting upstanding member 184. Thus, the upstanding members actcollectively to define an L-shaped area in which a plurality of foldeddisplay cartons 185 may be stacked vertically. It will also be notedthat each of the upstanding members is supported such that its bottomedge is spaced a short distance above the plane of shelf so that aclearance space is provided through which the bottommost display cartonmay be slid out from under the stack.

As most clearly shown in FIGURE 9, the amount of this clearance spacemay be adjusted by varying the vertical position of a plate 186 securedto the upstanding wall portion of support member 172 by a pair of screws188 passing through slots 190. The upper portion of plate 186 is bent atright angles so as to provide a tab 192 through which an adjusting bolt194 extends, the

bottom of the bolt bearing against the horizontally extending portion ofmember 172. n

As further shown in FIGURE 9, one end of a guide plate 208 is suspendedfrom support member 172 by means of a pair of blocks 202, 204 havingbolts 206, 208 passing therethrough. This guide plate extends to theright as viewed in FIGURE 2 having its mid-portion suspended fromtransverse member 158 by means of depending blocks 210, 212 having bolts214, 216 passing therethrough. Plate 200 extends further to the right,as viewed in FIGURE 2, and terminates along edge 218 which forms ajunction between plate 200 and plate 95, it being understood that theupper surfaces of these two plates are coplanar.

As illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 5, plate 200 also serves as a supportfor the inserting mechanism 300 the details of which will be describedhereinafter.

Immediately below carton stacking mechanism shelf 20 is provided with apair of slots 220, 222 which receive a pair of slide bar-s 224 and 226,respectively. As most clearly shown in FIGURE 6, a horizontally disposedplate 228 is rigidly secured to the upper surfaces of bars 224 and 226which are also rigidly connected to crosshead 230 by means of bolts 232and 234. These bolts also carry a pair of lateral guide bars 236, 238which slide over spaced support members 240 and 242 rigidly secured tothe bottom surface of shelf 20. In this manner, reciprocating motion ofcrosshead 230 is transmitted to plate 228 so that the right hand edge244 is 0perative to engage the lowermost carton and move the carton frombeneath the stack to the right so that flap portion 187 of carton 185comes to rest beneath plate 200 and inserting mechanism 300, as will bedescribed in detail hereinafter.

Continuing with particular reference to FIGURE 5, a vacuum supply tube246 is mounted beneath shelf 20 and supplies a vacuum pressure throughfitting 248 and through a plurality of ports 250 to the underneath sideof the bottommost carton so that the suction pressure pulls thebottommost carton flatly against shelf 20 prior to the actuation ofplate 228.

Reciprocating motion is transmitted to crosshead 230 and plate 228 bymeans of plunger 252 of pneumatic cylinder 254 which lis suspendedbeneath shelf 20 by a pair of brackets 256, 258.

The carton opening mechanism 260 will now be described with particularreference to FIGURES l, 2, 5 and 7. This mechanism includes a tiltingplate 262 the lower edge of which is hinged to the bottom surface ofshelf 20 by a suitable hinge 264 so that the plate may move from theslanted position illustrated in FIGURE 5 to the vertical positionillustrated in FIGURE 1. Movement of the plate is accomplished by meansof a lever 266 the upper portion of which is secured to the underneathside of the plate. The lower portion of lever 266 carries a laterallyextending pin 268 to which one end of a tension spring 269 is connected,the other end of the spring being secured to stationary bracket 270which depends from shelf 20. Between lever 266 and the point at whichthe spring is attached, pin 268 passes beneath a latch 272 having anotch which receives and locks pin 2.68. Latch 272 is pivotally securedto bracket 276 by pin 278 and is rigidly connected to depending lever280 which, in turn, is .actuated by plunger 282 of solenoid 284. In thismanner, the solenoid is operative to pivot latch 272 so as to unlock pin268 and thereby permit spring 269 to tilt plate 262 from the slantedposition of FIG- URE 5 to the vertical position of FIGURE 1.

Lever 266 is also pivotally connected to an `actuating rod 288 whichextends from the lever, through an oversize aperture 290 in cross head230, `and terminates in a free end 292 which carries a rigid stop 294and an abutment spring 296. It will be understood that plunger 252 isoperative to move crosshead 230 to the left from the position shown inFIGURE 5. This compresses spring 296 against stop 294 and moves rod 288to the left-most position illustrated in FIGURE 5 against the action ofspring 269 whereby plate 262 is pivoted from the vertical position shownin FIGURE 1 to the slanted position shown in FIGURE 5 wherein it is heldby latch 272. A microswitch 298 is rigidly supported beneath shelf 23 atthe position shown in FIGURE 5 so that it is actuated by crosshead 230when the latter is moved to its left-most position. This microswitch i-sconnected to actuate .a solenoid valve for reversing the direction ofplunger 252 as will be subsequently described in detail.

The inserting mechanism 300 will now be described with particularreference to FIGURES 1, 2 and 5. Referring rst to FIGURE 5, theinserting mechanism includes a pair of vertical walls 302 and 304 thebottom portions of which are bent at right angles and secured to supportplate 201) by a plurality of boits. A ceiling 3136 is supported betweenthe walls by a pair of angle braces 368 and 3M. A cross-member 312 issecured to the ceiling and provides a pair of upstanding projections314, 316 which receive one end of .a pair of springs 313, 320. Theopposite ends of the springs are secured, respectively, to each one of apair of doors 321 and 322 which are hinged to the walls along theirvertical edges. A third door or flap 324 is hinged to ceiling 306 with ahorizontally disposed hinge so that the ap hangs vertically when doors321, 322 are closed as shown in FIGURE 5. However, as the doors areopened to the position shown in phantom line in FIGURE 2, ap 324 swingsupwardly and assumes a horizontal position .as also shown in phantomline.

The inserting mechanism 300 further includes a vertical back-up door 326which is suspended from suitable side brackets 32S and 330 by means of ahorizontal hinge. The back side of door 326 is provided with a weigh-t332 so that the door provides a movably backing surface for the displaycarton which is capable of being swung upwardly to a horizontal positionso as to permit the display carton to pass therethrough in the directionof arrow 334.

The discharge mechanism will now be described with particular referenceto FIGURES 1 and 8. As shown in FIGURE 1, a pair of vertical walls 336,338 extend horizontally along the edges of a conveyor belt 340 which, asshown in FIGURE 4, is driven by endless chain 342 overrunning sprockets344 and 346.

As shown in FIGURE 1, a gui-de wml 34S is cantilevered from wall 333 sothat it forms a narrow passage in conjunction with wall 336, the latterof which supports a switch 337 the operation of which will besubsequently described. The display cartons containing the live-packspass through this narrow space in an upright position, ie., a positionwherein the five-packs are stacked vertically and actuate switch 337. Inorder to tilt the display cartons so that the stack of vepacks lie in ahorizontal position, a knock-over bar 356 is positioned such that itengages the display carton at a point above its midcenter and knock-sthe carton over to a horizontal position.

At the extreme upper right corner of FIGURE 1, a pneumatic cylinder 352is illustrated which includes a plunger 354 to which a pushing block 356is secured. Block 356 carries a horizontal cam strip 35S which actuatesmicroswitch 360 and a second microswitch 362 is secured to a rear wall364. Each di-splay carton actuates microswitch 362 as it is moved in thedirection of arrow 366 by the conveyor and it will be understood thatswitches 360 and 362 control the operation of cylinder 352.

An additional wall 368 is provided parallel to wall 364 and the formerincludes a .sloping portion 37) which guides the display carton and actsto fold the flap of th-e carton as it is discharged in the direction ofarrow 372 under the pushing action of 'block 356. A hold-down spring 355is secured to Wall 336 in order to frictionally engage the last cartonand prevent it from moving back- Wards upon the sudden release of thecompres-sive force exerted by block 356 when the latter is retracted.

The mechanical drive for each of the above described components will nowbe set forth with particular reference to FIGURE l0. Shaft 52, supportedin bearings 54 and 56, is rotated by sprocket 375 carrying drive chain377 which may be driven from any suitable power source (not shown).Shaft 52 rotates cani 56 so as to reciprocate plunger 3ft in the mannerset forth hereinbefore in the description of FIGURES 3 and 4. Inaddition, shaft 52 rotates shaft 376 through bevel gears 373 and 379.Shaft 376 is journalled in bearing 360, 332 and carries a sprocket 384which drives chain 386 in a continuous manner. This continuous drive isconverted to an intermittent drive -by means of brake and clutchassembly 390.

rThis assembly includes a shaft 391 journalled in bearings 392, 393which rotatively carries a brake disc 394 and clutch disc 395. Chain 386continuously rotates a sprocket 396 kwhich is journalled on shaft 391 soas to rotate relative thereto. Thus, shaft 391 rotates sprocket 121) andchain 116 only when clutch disc 395 is shifted into engagement with:sprocket 396 by clutch solenoid 397. Conversely, rotation of shaft 391may be stopped by disengagement of the clutch disc and simultaneousengagement of brake disc 394 by brake 393 actuated by brake solenoid399. In this manner, the continuous drive from chain 336 is converted toan intermittent drive for operating lateral shifting mechanism 160.

A motor 460 is secured to shelf 22 having an output drive shaft 462which rotates sprocket 346 so as to continuously drive conveyor belt 34)through chain 342 and sprocket 344. Thus, plunger '36, lateral shiftingmechanism and conveyor belt 346 are each driven through the mechanicaldrive means just described, whereas, pneumatic cylinders are employed toactuate push blocks 142, 356, plate 22S and tilting plate 262. Thecontrol system for these cylinders will now be described with particularreference to FIGURE lil.

Pneumatic cylinders 146, 254 and 352 are actuated by double-actingsolenoid operated valves 464, 4116 and 438, respectively. The windingsof these solenoids are connected to a power source 410 having a manualon-off :switch 412 through a plurality of the previously mentionedswitches as follows. The first winding of solenoid 494 is 4connected tothe power source through switch 146 such that the closure of thisnormally open switch moves the Valve associated with solenoid 434 so asto extend pusher 142. The second winding of solenoid 434 and the firstwinding of solenoid 4416 are connected to the power source throughnormally open .switch 337 such that closure of this switch moves thevalves associated with the respective solenoids whereby pusher 142 isretracted and crosshead 236 is simultaneously extended. The secondwinding of solenoid 466 is connected through switch 298 such that, whenthe crosshead is fully extended, it closes normally open switch 298which actuates the valve associated with solenoid 406 to retract thecrosshead. Similarly, the windings of solenoid 468 are connecte-d to thepower 4source through switches 362 and 360. Thus, when a filled displaycarton depresses normally open switch 362, the valve associated withsolenoid 433 is actuated so as to extend pusher 356. On the other hand,normally open switch 360 is of the type wherein the movable contact isbiased outwardly so that it is held in open position by cam strip 358until the pusher is fully extended. Thus, when the pusher is fullyextended, the right-hand edge of the cam strip is to the left of switch36), whereupon, the switch closes and energizes solenoid 408 so as toreverse the valve associated therewith and thereby retract pusher 356.In this manner, the vepacks automatically actuate the various switchesand, in turn, the switches actuate the cylinders which move the stack tothe next position.

Motor `411@ is connected .to a second power source 414 through amanually operated on-off switch 416 so that conveyor 340 is operativewhenever switch 416 is closed. Power source 414 also supplies power to arelay 418 to which it is connected through switches 138 and 83, theseswitches being in series between the power source and the relay butbeing in parallel with respect to each other. Relay 418 is shown asbeing in its deenergized position wherein the movable contact 420connects a D.C. power source 422 to brake solenoid 399. When normallyopen switch 138 is closed, the relay is energized so that movablecontact 420 deenergizes the brake and energizes the solenoid of clutch397. As will be subsequently described, switch 83 is then closed so thatthis switch holdsy movable contact 420 in the latter position whenswitch 138 is subsequently opened. Thus, the brake remains disengagedand the clutch remains engaged until switch 83 is subsequently opened,whereupon, the clutch disengages and the brake is engaged. In addition,it will be noted that switch 138 is directly connected to solenoid 284which actuates latch 272 so that the latch is released when switch 13Sis actuated.

Although separate power sources 410, 414 and 422 have been illustrated,it will be understood that these may be replaced by a single powersource if all of the associated solenoids are of the A.C. type and ofthe same voltage. Similarly, a single A C. source may be employed inconjunction with a rectier for operating the brake and clutch if D.C.solenoids are employed for the latter.

The operation of the entire machine is as follows. Conveyor 26 suppliesindividual five-packs to position A wherein each five-pack isindividually raised by plunger 3) through trap doors 62 whereby a stackof five-packs is formed in stacking mechanism 60. When the stackcontains the predetermined number, such as ten, the uppermost packdepresses switch 138 which energizes relay 418 so as to move contact 420into a position whereby the brake is released and the clutch is engaged.Drive is thereby supplied by chain 116 to lateral shifting mechamism i)so that, as seen in FIGURE 3, arms 127 begin to slide the stack to theright through doors 82. However, before switch 138 is released, bridge122 moves away from switch 83 thereby allowing this normally closedswitch to close so that the clutch remains engaged and the brake remainsdisengaged when switch 138 is released and therefore opens. Arms 127then slide the stack to position B at which point bridge 124 has movedinto engagement with switch 83 so that this switch is reopened and therelay 418 is deenergized. Upon deenergization of the relay, the clutchis immediately disengaged and the brake is engaged so that furthermovement of the lateral shifting mechanism is prevented.

At this point it must be understood that, when switch 138 actuated theclutch so as to initially drive the lateral shifting mechanism, thisswitch simultaneously energized solenoid 284 so that latch 272 releasedpin 268 thereby permitting spring 269 to raise tilting plate 262 andopen a display carton. That is, the plate moved from the slantedposition shown in FIGURE 5 to the upright position shown in FIGURE 1 sothat a display carton was opened in position C during the travel of thestack from position A to position B.

When the stack of tive-packs reaches position B, one of the five-packsactuates switch 146 which is operative to extend pusher 142 so that thestack is pushed through inserting mechanism 300. The operation of thismechanism is such that the forward ends of the tive-packs bear againstdoors 320, 322 and ap 324 so that these doors and flap swing into theopen display carton and act as a shoehorn in guiding the packs into thecarton. Once the packs are in the carton, pusher 142 continues to movethe filled carton onto conveyor 340 which then conveys the filled cartonbetween walls 336 and 348 so that the carton actuates switch 337.Actuation of this switch simultaneously retracts pusher 142 and extendscrosshead 230 to the left as viewed in FIGURES 1, 2 and 11.

Movement of crosshead 230 restores tilting plate 262 to the positionshown in FIGURE 5 and also moves plate 228 to the left such that ports250 are uncovered. This suction pressure pulls the bottommost cartondownwardly against shelf 20 so that, when crosshead 230 subsequentlyactuates reversing switch 298 and plate 228 moves to the right, thelatter pushes the bottommost carton ahead of it so that ap portion 187goes under plate 200 and inserting mechanism 300 while the foldedportion rides over tilting plate 262. Thus, tilting plate 262 isreturned to cocked position and is ready to be released by theenergization of solenoid 284 upon closure of switch 138 by thesubsequent stack of ve packs.

Once the filled carton has been placed on conveyor belt 340 by theaction of pusher 142, the conveyor belt moves the carton in thedirection of arrow 366 with the five-packs still in a vertical position.As tripping bar 350 engages the carton, the carton is tipped over to theright as viewed in FIGURE l so that the stack is then in a horizontalposition and the conveyor belt continues to move the carton until thebottom surface thereof depresses switch 362. This switch energizes thesolenoid associated with power cylinder 352 so that pusher 356 moves thepack to the left in the direction of arrow 372. During this movement,the iiap 187 of the carton is automatically folded against the exposedends of the fivepacks by angularly positioned wall 370. At this point,the cam strip 358 has moved beyond switch 360 so that this switch isopened and the solenoid valve of cylinder 352 is reversed so that pusher356 is automatically retracted to its initial position. Thus, eachsucceeding carton is pushed by pusher 356 so that it, in turn, pushesthe preceding cartons through the channel formed by shelf 20 and walls364, 368, it being understood that the channel leads to the next machinewhich, for example, may be a cellophane wrapping machine.

The foregoing description of the operation of the machine has been setforth with respect to the advancement of a particular stack offive-packs through the machine. However, it will be understood that, inactual practice, several stacks of five-packs are present in variousportions of the machine at any given instant so that there is extremelyrapid production of the filled cartons. For example, one stack is beingstacked in location A during the same time that the previous stack isbeing moved from position A through B to C. Similarly, the next displaycarton is moved into position in inserting mechanism 300 and is openedby plate 262 during the time that pusher 142 is retracting and the nextstack is approaching position B. As a result of these simultaneousoperations, plunger 30 may be reciprocated at a rate of 150 strokes perminute which, in the example of ten packs per carton, produces fteenfilled cartons per minute which represents an increase of approximatelythree times that which the fastest hand packer could accomplish prior tothe invention. In addition, it will be understood that the fullyautomatic operation permits one operator to run a plurality of suchmachines or to run this machine as well as those preceding andsucceeding it on the assembly line.

Of course, it is to be understood that the foregoing description has setforth the use of the invention in connection with the packaging ofcigars only for the purpose of illustrating a preferred embodiment andone use thereof; it being readily apparent that the invention is equallycapable of stacking and inserting a plurality of any type of items intoa relatively larger container. In addition, since numerous modificationsand alternations will become readily apparent from the foregoingdescription, it is to be understood that the invention is to be limitedonly as specifically set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, means for producing a stack of item5, a lOdiIlgSatiOrl, means adjacent the loading station for retaining a supply offolded containers, reciprocating means for successively removing onefolded container at a time from said supply and transferring it to theloading station While still folded, a movable member pivotally mountedat the loading station and adapted to underlie one side of thecontainer, means to pivot said member to a substantially verticalposition to erect the container and support said one side of thecontainer, means movable into the front of said erected container at theloading station to guide said predetermined number of stacked items intothe erected container, a weighted back-up door pivoted on asubstantially horizontal axis to back up the rear of the container andmeans for transferring a predetermined number of stacked items from saidstacking means to the interior of an erected container at the loadingstation and for transferring a container loaded with said predeterminednumber of stacked items to a point removed from said loading station byadvancing the loaded container through the pivoted back up door.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which the transferring means is aplunger.

3. The combination of claim 1 in which the movable means comprisespivoted plates which swing open into an erected container at the loadingstation for holding the container open and for guiding the entrance ofsaid predetermined number of stacked items into said container.

4. The combination of claim 1 in which the lastmentioned means includesmeans for removing a predetermined number of stacked items from thestacking means, drive means for continuously driving said stackingmeans, transmission means for supplying drive from said continuouslydriving means to said stack removing means and means in saidtransmission means for converting the ycontinuous drive to anintermediate drive.

5. The combination of claim 1 in which the movable member is a plate.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,43 0,87811/1947 Kimball 53-61 2,906,075 9/1959 Vogel a 53-186 2,937,482 5/1960Lazott et al. 53-159 X 2,947,125 8/1960 Wilson et al. 53-61 2,997,830 8/1961 Nelson 53--62 3,060,659 10/1962 Blais et al 53-186 3,107,01410/1963 Woodrul et al 53-159 X FOREIGN PATENTS 752,579 7/ 1956 GreatBritain.

FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner.

TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, GRANVILLE Y. CUSTER, J R.,

A. E. FOURNIER, Assistant Examiners.

1. IN COMBINATION, MEANS FOR PRODUCING A STACK OF ITEMS, A LOADING STATION, MEANS ADJACENT THE LOADING STATION FOR RETANING A SUPPLY OF FOLDED CONTAINERS, RECIPROCATING MEANS FOR SUCCESSIVELY REMOVIONG ONE FOLDED CONTAINER AT A TIME FROM SAID SUPPLY AND TRANSFERRING IT TO TJE LOADING STATION WHILE STILL FOLDED, A MOVABLE MEMBER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED AT THE LOADING STATION AND ADAPTED TO UNDERLIE ONE SIDE OF THE CONTAINER, MEANS TO PIVOT SAID MEMBER TO A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL POSITION TO ERECT THE CONTAINER AND DUPPORT SAID ONE SIDE OF THE CONTAINER, MEANS MOVABLE INTO THE FRONT OF SAID ERECTED CONTAINER AT THE LOADING STATION TO GUIDE SAID PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF STACKED ITEMS INTO THE ERECTED CONTAINER, A WEIGHTED BACK-UP DOOR PIVOTED ON A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL AXIS TO BACK UP THE REAR OF THE CONTAINER AND MEANS FOR TRANSFERRING A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF STACKED ITEMS FROM SAID STACKING MEANS TO THE INTERIOR OF AN ERECTED CONTAINER AT THE LOADING STATION AND FOR TRANSFERRING A CONTAINER LOADED WITH SAID PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF STACKED ITEMS TO A POINT REMOVED FROM SAID LOADING STATION BY ADVANCING THE LOADED CONTAINER THROUGH THE PIVOTED BACK UP DOOR. 